Unbeaten Mandeville on road to Ponchatoula

Mandeville (4-0) holds the early lead in District 7-5A play with a 2-0 record as the Skippers travel to the Swamp to take on the Ponchatoula Green Wave tonight. Mandeville downed the Slidell Tigers 24-21 at home last week, while Ponchatoula (3-1, 1-1) suffered a disappointing 42-20 defeat at the hands of the Covington Fighting Lions on the road.

Mandeville routed Ponchatoula 43-7 last year.

Last week, Skippers’ junior quarterback John Wenzel got the start and delivered, completing 13-of-24 passes for 172 yards. He also rushed for 79 yards, including a 32- yard TD. On the season, Wenzel is 21-of-39 for 305 yards with two touchdowns.

Mandeville coach Guy LeCompte said Wenzel has taken the bull by the horns with his opportunities. “John is playing good football for us.”

The Skippers have done a good job spreading the ball around.

Sophomore Elijah Leveé tops the team with 12 receptions for 91 yards. Levee´ caught four passes for 38 yards last week. Seniors Will Bunns and Brandon Weeden come in with 11 catches each. Bunns has 194 receiving yards with two TDs, while Weeden has 161 yards and two scores. Senior Michael Garrido has nine catches, totaling 107 yards with one touchdown. He hauled in four catches for 66 yards in last week’s Slidell victory.

Junior running back Darrell Adams leads the Skippers’ ground game with 190 yards on 38 carries, a 5-yard per carry average. He has two TDs.

LeCompte is hoping this is the week that his Skippers can finally do away with the numerous penalties and mental mistakes that the club has committed during the first four weeks. The Skippers were flagged for 11 penalties against Slidell. Despite LeCompte being frustrated with that aspect, his Skippers remain unbeaten.

“We want to minimize penalties and mistakes. We have to concentrate on finding a way to eliminate the mistakes that have hurt us offensively,” LeCompte said.

The Skippers’ defense has excelled as a unit, while the offense has moved the ball in spurts to post the undefeated record, heading into week three of district play.

Mandeville’s defense has recorded two shutouts, while only allowing 34 points this season (8.5 points per game).

Senior defensive back Michael Crain leads the Skippers with 16 individual tackles. He has nine assists with one tackle for a loss along with a forced fumble. Crain was credited with nine individual tackles and one assist last week.

Senior cornerback Jerry Mitchell is next with 14 solo stops. He has two assists with a stop for a loss. Mitchell has one interception. Mitchell posted five tackles and one assist last week. Senior linebackers Hayden Harper and Jeff Rebouche are doing a solid job. Both players have 12 individual tackles and 11 assists, helping to bolster the Skippers’ defense. Senior cornerback Kody Keowen has also tallied 12 individual stops with three assists. He has three tackles for losses.

LeCompte praised the job that defensive coordinator Craig Jones and the coaches have done. “The defensive coaches continue to do an outstanding job preparing our guys. I have lots of confidence on the defensive side of the ball. The defense has been executing the game plan extremely well,” LeCompte added.

LeCompte described Ponchatoula as a hungry football team. “They are aggressive, physical and have good size. We want to be able to match their intensity level playing on the road.”

Ponchatoula second-year coach Mike Baiamonte said his club must be on its game tonight going against a solid Mandeville team.

“Mandeville is playing the best in the district. They are a hot team. We are going to have to make sure we play good football to stay in it,” Baiamonte said.

“Offensively, Mandeville does a good job of spreading the ball out. They know how to work the screen pass at the right time. Additionally, they are not a one-dimensional club. You have to also prepare to stop their running game,” Baiamonte added.

Baiamonte said he is impressed with the Skippers’ defensive front. “Since we are primarily a running team their quick, physical players up front will present some challenges for our offensive line. Their defensive scheme allows their front six to be solid.”

The Green Wave runs a double slot option offense.

Baiamonte said his team has done a good job running the football this season. Ponchatoula picked up 330 yards on the ground in last week’s defeat at Covington.

Green Wave junior fullback Joe Green (5-11, 220) had a stellar game last week, rushing for 191 yards on 27 carries and two TDs. He scored on runs of 76 and 6 yards. Green continues to be the workhorse for the Ponchatoula offense.

Sophomore quarterback Eldrid Palmer (5-9, 165) only threw the ball five times last week. He completed two passes for just 17 yards with an interception. The Green Wave was also flagged for nine penalties, totaling 48 yards.